Saturday, October 13, 2012

Re-Inventing Health Class

For most high school students health class is just another filler
in their schedule where they can get an easy grade for showing up. This
is because many teachers stick with a very "by the book" approach to
this class. Simply, a little creativity and imagination could make
health a student's favorite class of the day. There is an immense amount
of topics that can be covered in health, ranging from eating disorders
and drugs to current events and world news. There are many basic
activities that can be used to enhance a health class if given the
chance. Any activity that helps the students have a hand in their own
learning will instantly be more interesting. Health should not simply be
a class filled with PowerPoints and lectures. Since the entire class
applies to real life experiences students may have, then the activities
should do just the same. Lessons should be based around the students
themselves and their thoughts and feelings rather than just a fountain
of facts.
Classroom
based discussions are popular among English and History classes, but
how about incorporating them into a health class. A discussion on a
current event could have the students enticed for hours. One way to do
this is through a Socratic Seminar. This is basically a class discussion
lead by the students themselves. With an interesting topic, students
will talk about and feed off each other's ideas. As long as everyone
agrees to respect each other's opinions and disagree courteously the
Socratic Seminar will be a success. Teachers may even be surprised by
the participation of some students who may usually be quiet or shy.
Teachers, do not worry, you will not lose control of your class. If the
discussion goes in an unintended direction the teacher can simply ask
questions to the group that direct the discussion any way they choose.
Students will really enjoy this because it is a way for them all to be
involved with no pressure to give the right answer. Since health class
lends itself to so many interesting and controversial topics, the
Socratic Seminar can never fail.
There are numerous activities
that can be developed around health content, because, again, health
content is so extensive and easily relatable. Skits or puppet shows
depending on the content are a great way to get students thinking and
enjoying themselves at the same time. No one ever said that learning
couldn't be fun. Students can be given a specific topic and after doing
research or using facts given to them, they can put together a skit or
puppet show encompassing the information. This is a creative way to get
information across to students and it lets them have a hand in their
education. By creating the skits and by watching the ones other students
present they are learning the information. Students are more likely to
remember the information presented also. If there is a funny or creative
skit students will remember more of the information presented then they
would from taking notes during a lecture.
For most people when
they remember things they learned in school it is not information from
notes. No one says "oh yes, I know that the cranium is another word for
the head from Dr. Smith's lecture from Anatomy class my junior year in
high school." Instead people remember information based on something
they did when they learned it, for example someone many people remember
all the states in the U.S. from the states song they learn in music
class. Any of these creative teaching techniques can be applied to
multiple subjects, but health class clearly lends itself very well to
these techniques. Students can directly relate to the topics being
covered and for many of them the topics directly affect them so they
have opinions and ideas to share. By embracing these techniques teachers
can re-invent the notions behind high school health and transform it
into a subject that students enjoy and find great benefit in.